U.S. v. Johnson

Defendant pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm as a convicted felon and even though defendant previously was convicted of three counts of robbery under Indiana state law, he argued that he did not qualify for an enhanced sentence under the Armed Career Criminal Act. Defendant argued that a jury should decide whether he had committed the robberies on the same or different occasions. The district court rejected this argument, concluded that the robberies were committed on different occasions, and sentenced defendant under the ACCA. The Seventh Circuit vacated and remanded the district court’s order, explaining that the Supreme Court had recently held that the Fifth and Sixth Amendments entitled defendants to have a jury decide whether prior offenses were committed on the same or different occasions and that the district court erred in declining to send the different-occasions question to a jury. (HAMILTON and BRENNAN, concurring)